Captain Envy
by Faye Silo
Summary: Steve Rogers hadn't met anyone more beautiful than Peggy Carter. Until he met Rose Tyler, that is. All events occur after winter soldier. Steve/Rose centric. Mentions of Tentoo/Rose.
1. Captain

**Author's note: HAAAAA, finally. I've been wanting to write a Rose Tyler/Steve Rogers story for awhile and I'm finally gonna give it a go. Heck yeah. It probably won't be long. Mostly drabbles, a few like this one and the next are there to mostly set up back story. So, this could go on for as long as I like really. Mostly cutesy stuff. Read and Review**

**Disclaimer: I literally own nothing. Just the plot really.**

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Steven Grant Rogers didn't often get shot at by women, but when it did happen (which had only been twice) it was of a notable occurrence. The two times that it had happened both women had been beautiful, English, and extremely angry.

He remembers agent Peggy Carter picking up a gun in a bunker and firing at him immediately after he had asked her what she had thought of his shield choice. He hadn't realized that it had been out of jealousy, taking it to be one of those odd quirks that women had that men just weren't meant to understand. In fact, it wouldn't be until after he had been resurrected from his icy tomb that he would understand. Even then, Tony Stark would be the one to explain it to him while Thor and Clint laughed at him.

The second time that it happened he was caught just as off guard as the first, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

The first time he met Rose Tyler was before she was even a part of their team. He was doing his run around the capital, laughing every time he passed Sam Wilson, when he noticed her honey colored ponytail swaying as she jogged into their trail. He'd been to slow on the uptake to stop himself from colliding with her, wrapping her up in his arms instead to protect her from the rough tumble.

He lifted himself above her, an apology forming in his throat but dying at his lips as he looked at her. Her lightly glowing gold eyes boring into his own light blue as she caught her breath. Her hair fanning about her slightly sweaty face as her brow creased in a perplexing manner, "Are ya gonna move?"

He scrambled to get up, tugging her with him, as he realized the scandalous position they were in. He blushed when he took in her hot pink sports bra and tight black capris, he still wasn't used to the change in women's clothing style.

"Sorry about that ma'am, I get into my own world sometimes. I find it especially hard to concentrate around a beautiful dame like – I am so sorry! I didn't – not that you aren't of course, beautiful I mean." He was cut off by her tinkling laugh, a beautiful tongue in teeth smile on her slightly flushed face.

"Thank ya for the compliment, Cap." She began jogging backwards and away from him, "Best get a move on, your friend has got quite the head start now."

He watched her for a moment, darting his eyes towards Sam before trying to call out for her, "Wait! Wait, I didn't get your name!"

"You'll see me again!" She turned around, continuing her jog.

"What if I don't?!"

"Well, then I'll see you first!" She took off at a run then, not waiting for his response. He hadn't expected her too really.

He shook his head, a smile on his face as he took up a light jog to catch up to Sam, Today might be better than anticipated.

-:-:-:-:-

He was suspicious when he had been called to Stark tower, body rigid and nerves on edge as he made his way to the top floor where he was sure that the man himself would be waiting. So, color him surprised when he stepped out and saw the whole team awaiting him.

They were all seated or standing around a large conference table, Nick Fury stationed at the head, "How nice of you to finally join us, Captain. We thought we were going to have to get this pony show started without you. Now, would kindly mind sitting your ass down so I may begin?"

He narrowed his eyes as Stark sniggered off in his corner, casting a disparaging glance at Natasha as he took a seat beside where she was propped against the table, "Might I inquire as to why we're here?"

Fury stood, intimidating as he began to circle around the table and click through slides on the three dimensional program running at the center of it, the first being of the now shut down S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, "As you all know, we have recently lost SHIELD, not for lack of trying to save it on my part." A heated glance was cast in Steve's direction, "Unfortunately, we no longer have the backing of the American government. Now, this may come as a surprise to you overly entitled heroes, but we are nothing without funding. So, I have taken it upon myself to reach out to an overseas company that is willing to get its hands dirty for a good cause." He paused, bringing the hologram to its next slide of a 'T' in a hexagon.

There was a deep sigh from across the room as Tony fell into a chair, "Are you kidding me?"

"Do you have something you would like to say, Mr. Stark, or am I allowed to finish?" Fury leaned against the table, his one good eye boring into the billionaire harshly.

"Torchwood?"

"Yes, Mr. Stark, Torchwood."

Steve felt like he could hear the collective turning of heads at the new voice that had filled the room. As surprised as everyone else seemed to be, he was much more surprised.

"Jogging girl?" He stood quickly, more out of formality than surprise.

"Hello again, Captain." She smile a soft smile, one that didn't nearly reach her eyes, before letting it drop as she stared angrily at Tony, "Do you have a problem with my company, Mr. Stark?"

Tony was laughing as he responded, not even slightly deterred by the angry looks that both he and Bruce were giving him for being so rude, "_Your _company? I'm sorry, but I have studied up extensively on Torchwood and I don't remember it being run by a twenty something bottle blonde."

"No, you wouldn't. I try to stay hidden and apparently it's worked since you don't know who I am."

The Captain stared her down, captivated by the authority she commanded (and maybe a little bit by the tight fitting black cat suit she wore). She certainly didn't look like someone who could run a company, but he didn't look 94 either.

"Team, this is Rose Tyler, codename: Bad Wolf. She runs a very deep underground company known as the Torchwood Institute. Agent Tyler here founded the Institute several years ago to help with any issues that should arise of the alien nature." Fury switched the slide again to show an image of a green monster, "I'll let agent Tyler take over from here to explain her facility and the help her Institute is offering us." He handed her the small remote before moving to the side.

"Thank you, Agent Fury." She stood at the head of the table for a moment, unnerving them all with her eyes before speaking, "My Institute has state of the art facilities-"

"I'm sorry." Bruce was standing now at the far end of the table, "But you honestly want us to believe this?"

"Want you to believe what, Mr. Banner?"

"You. I hate to agree with Tony, but you can't be more than 23 and I don't see how-"

"Right, So I suppose I should dig into information about myself before I begin speaking about my company." She took a seat, her hands resting gently on the table in front of her as she stared between all of them once more, "My name is Rose Marion Tyler, I was born in a parallel universe where I traveled with an alien man named The Doctor. I received my powers from his ship, the TARDIS, and was trapped here several years later. I'm not going to get deep and personal here, you don't need any of that. What you do need to know is that I can see the whole of time and space, every single atom of your existence, and I can divide them. I see everything, all that is, all that was, all that ever could be."

"What do you mean you can see 'every single atom and divide them'?" Natasha had a hand at her hip, ready to pull a weapon and putting the Captain on edge.

"Exactly what you think I mean." Her hand moved in a sweeping motion, startling the red headed woman when her gun erupted into golden dust in her palm, "I am nearing 200 years old, you all look like children to me."

-:-:-:-:-

He had been intimidated by her at first, even he could admit to that. Though, he knew he wasn't the only one. Stark and Romanoff had been the first to state that they didn't trust her as soon as she had left, both of them looking heavily chastised by the words she had spoken to them.

Sure, her power had been pretty frightening, but it wasn't as if they hadn't faced something this startling before. Thor was pretty ancient and powerful himself, maybe not in a 'can see the future and destroy matter with the swipe of my hand' sort of way, but he was still over powered.

Steve was quick to point this out in the middle of the heated argument the group was having. He suggested they give her a chance. Better to have someone that powerful on their side, rather than batting for the other team.

"All I'm saying is that, if she's bad then it will be easier to keep an eye on her if we at least stay in her good graces."

They had all stared at him angrily, as if he should be the last one to speak on this matter since he'd taken down their original backing in the first place. He had stopped speaking all together after that. It all came down to Fury, and he had made his decision before the conference had even started.


	2. Rose

**_This took way longer than I wanted it to, but please read and review. I'm sorry if it's lacking. _**

**_Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the story line. all rights to bbc and Marvel._**

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Steve saw her again on his next run, her hot pink sports bra traded out for a deep blue one instead. He was surprised by the fact that if he kept the pace that he was at now he would only end up staying the same distance away. He put in extra effort to catch up to her, feet hitting the pavement harshly as he pulled up beside her then coming in sync with hers as he paced himself. He was oddly comforted by the sounds of their shoes hitting the pavement at the same time, his eyes darting over to look at her only to find that she was already looking back, "You're pretty quick, Miss Tyler."

Her tongue touched her teeth as she smiled, her hand coming up to tuck a stray lock of blonde hair away from her face, "Part of the powers I 'spose. You seem to have caught up alright, not scared of me then?"

"New things are always frightening, ma'am. It all comes down to what you do with that fear."

"An' what dijou decide?" She stopped to get a drink at a fountain along the path, her eyes trailing him even as she leaned down.

"Everyone deserves a chance, Miss Tyler." He stretched for a moment, silently waiting on her.

"Rose. You can call me Rose" She was staring at him still, unnerving him with her golden eyes.

He stuck out a hand, "Steve Rogers."

Her hand was soft, yet firm, in his own. His larger one encompassing hers as she gave a stiff shake. He felt like it fit perfectly, as if her hand had been molded by God itself to fit within his own.

She let go with a smile, her hand going to the pager at her hip before it had even begun to beep, "That'd be Fury. Have a good run, Steve." She jogged backwards for a moment before turning and taking off in a full out run. Lord was she fast.

Steve startled slightly when he felt someone at his elbow, his stance going hard as he looked to his right to find Sam staring at him awkwardly, "What?"

Sam's smile was slow coming as he stared, a gleam in his eye that Rogers had never seen before, "I think you like her. Natasha rubbing off on you finally? You gonna take her advice?"

He scoffed, rolling his eyes before taking off at a light jog. It wasn't like he hadn't thought about it, but letting go of Peggy was hard. It felt like just yesterday he was promising her a dance as he plummeted into the ocean. Scarred was what Natasha had called him, but Tony would just say he was scared. Wasn't it a little bit of both? Besides, people came with baggage. Rose had said she was nearly 200 years old, which was certainly a lot of baggage.

"Look man, why not just ask her out for coffee? It's not like it could hurt, right? What have you got to lose?"

A lot, he had a lot to lose.

-:-:-:-:-

When he saw Rose again it was for an assessment. He found the whole idea of it all strange, as he was sure the rest of the Avengers did. All of them would have to go into a large room, individually, and show their abilities.

Now, for a brief moment, he had been worried about Bruce. The Hulk was not easy to take down. But, upon finding out that the man actually wouldn't be participating, the pressure worked its way off his chest. However, he did have to wonder what Rose wanted with working knowledge of their abilities and moves.

"As I'm sure you are all aware, Agent Tyler and myself have called you all in here today for some training." Fury paced the room in front of the small group, his arms held behind his back while doing so, "Since Agent Tyler is new, she has graciously offered to go first. Ms. Tyler."

"Thank you, Fury. If you'll all follow me, please." She was wearing a standard SHIELD jumpsuit with the Torchwood Institutes logo emblazoned on the arm. He moved to walk nearly beside her as they headed down a corridor in the bunker they had all been called to.

"You're not bringing us down here to hide the bodies, are you ma'am?" His voice was quiet as he leaned over to speak near her ear.

Her laugh was a quiet tinkle before she responded, "'Course not. Just wait."

He leaned back up, a small smile on his face as they continued down the hallway. It wasn't much longer before she stopped in front of a metal door. She pushed it open and ushered them inside before following herself. He waited at the back for her before following her to the front.

The room had several desks with a few people already at them, their stations facing a large glass wall that looked out into what appeared to be a large arena.

"Welcome to your new trainin' facility." She swooped a hand out, indicating the facility beyond the glass, "This will be where we meet, for the most part." She turned to look at the people standing behind their desks, "This is the team that will be operatin' the technical side of the facility, keepin' it operational. I'd like you all to meet Sharon Kaye," a small brunette woman with thick glasses on her nose, "Derek Lanney," a tall, thin man with black hair, "and Lewis Stanley." A fit man with brown hair.

The small team nodded their head lightly before taking their seats and working away at their computers. Steve stared at them for a moment before dragging his eyes back to Rose, "The first thing you need to know about training here is that it finds your fears and pits you against them. As a wise man once told me, 'Everyone is afraid, it all comes down to what you do with that fear'. As I said, I'll be going first. Don't be surprised if you see stuff that you don't recognize. 'M not from here, after all." She winked before walking out of the room.

"This could be good. Maybe it'll give us a clue as to what her weaknesses might be." Tony was leaning against one of the Techies desks, arms across his chest as he stared down at the arena. Natasha and Clint had made their way to a couch in front of the windows, and he wasn't at all surprised to see Bruce leaning over the desks to see what the agents were working on in their computers. Steve shook his head before sidling up next to Fury in front of the far side of the window.

"What do you think, Boss?" He watched as Rose entered from a door far right, the room immediately silent as Lewis spoke through an intercom at the desk.

"Alright Ms. Tyler, the sequence will start in ten seconds. Make it to the other side and hit the button to finish the training. Should you wish to end the sequence at any time, let us know."

"No problem, Lew."

It was another few moments of silence, everyone crowding at the window to see what sort of horrors would be dragged from this woman's mind, before the training started.

The Captain watched as she took off at a run when the buzzer went off, her blonde ponytail bouncing behind her. He was shocked when she erupted into golden dust before coming back together several feet ahead of where she had been before. That was just cheating.

The first enemy to appear was some sort of round thing with a plunger on it. He startled when the thing fired and it grazed her arm, the blast exploding a hedge in the distance.

"Everything might be fake, but the pain is real. You get shot with stuff that imitates the pain. We feel it brings something more real to the scenarios." The brown haired Sharon hadn't even looked up from her computer as she said this.

"EX-TER-MI-NATE."

"Oh, I don't think so." She took careful aim, firing at the stalk on its head.

The thing stopped moving, taking aim again, "RECORDS INDICATE YOU ARE AN ASS-OC-I-ATE OF THE DOC-TOR, YOU WILL SHOW MER-CY."

"I'm the Bad Wolf, check your records again then tell me who should be beggin' for mercy."

There was a long pause where he wasn't sure what was going to happen, the thing seemingly searching some sort of records before speaking "MER-CY."

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"MER-CYYY!"

The Captain watched as the monster fell to dust. Rose was running again, the pistol at her hip now as she swiveled between some columns. He watched as the scene in front of her morphed into what appeared to be a control room, everything metal. She was close to the button, but she stopped moving all together at the scene in front of her.

He couldn't see much of her facial expressions from here, but could tell by her posture that this room wasn't good. He saw movement on the backside of the center column and was surprised when a tall, lanky man in a pin striped suit came from around it. His voice was thick with a cheery, English accent as he approached her.

"Hello, love! Where to today? We could go to the lost moon of Poosh, not really lost since I found it, or maybe a pleasure planet? Ooh!" He reached out a hand, grabbing her free one and dragging her to the console, "I know! We could just throw the old girl on random and see where we end up. Always up for a bit of running and adventure, me."

The control room was silent, everyone seemingly waiting for the danger in this situation. Steve wasn't sure that there was any, a fear didn't always have to be life threatening.

"Rose, darling, what's the matter?" his free hand was on her cheek now, a thumb wiping at her eyes, "Why're you crying? Is it the age thing again? It really doesn-"

"You're not real." Her gun fell from her hand, coming up to thread through the fingers on her cheek and bring them away from her face.

"'M not? Sure feel real."

She laughed lightly, "'M sure. 'M runnin' a trainin' program right now. You're part of the interface."

"That explains things." He nodded his head, moving away from her.

"Like?" She bent down to pick up the gun.

"Well, the lack of ceiling. I don't quite remember getting rid of that. Can't believe I didn't notice until now." He stared around at his surroundings before looking back at her, "Wait a minute, why am I a fear?"

She pocketed the gun in the holster before moving over to wrap him in her arms, "Losin' you like I did on the beach, watchin' as you fade away. I'm gonna have to face that, here, now."

Steve felt uncomfortable, like he was walking in on a private moment, but couldn't bring himself to look away.

"That was hard on me, too." He held her for a moment before pushing her back to stare at her, "Well, let's do this together, shall we? It's good bye for me, too. Might not be burning up a sun, mind, but it feels just about the same. How about we get it all out this time?"

She nodded her head, "Been a hundred years and I still love you, Doctor."

"Blimey! A hundred years? I feel like I just rolled out of our bed to get a head start on the TARDIS." He ran a hand through his brown hair, "Well, if it's the last chance I'll get to say it to this you, then, just know that I lo–"

The image was gone before it could finish. He felt his heart clench in his chest as her shoulders shook softly. He wondered who the man was as she let out a scream and went to dust, appearing not seconds later at the button. She pressed it quickly before leaving through the door next to it.

Steve stared at the space she had occupied not moments before, weighing his options on what he could do. He wanted to find her, but he didn't really know her that well. The chances of him being more of pest than help were awfully high.

"That was Ms. Tyler's late husband. He lived a long life, but she outlived him in the end. They both built Torchwood from the ground up." Derek's voice was soft as he spoke, a heaviness filling the room with his words.

Steve had turned to look at him, but was startled to see Rose standing in the doorway, "The Doctor wrote the program to play on emotional fears. It's different nearly every time you go in there. Sometimes your loved one is a monster, sometimes they're exactly as you remember them. It almost makes it harder."

He figured dead husband matched up pretty well with his dead girlfriend baggage. He wasn't one to compare losses though, "I'd like to volunteer to go next."

"Who are you trying to impress, Captain tight pants?" Tony was hovering by the desks again, trying to take a look at the computers.

"Not you." He kept his face passive as he stared at the other man. It was days like this that he missed Howard Stark.

He inclined his head at Rose as he passed her, moving quickly down the hall with a man he hadn't even seen standing there.

"I'm just here to take you down to the arena. The room just before it will have all your equipment in it. Mr. Fury had it brought in last night."

-:-:-:-:-

He had been running through what appeared to be trees when he came to a clearing where a soldier stood with his back to him. He waited a moment, seeing if the man would turn, before throwing his shield.

Steve was in awe when the man caught it, sliding back a few feet before throwing it back at him again. He caught it, the edge digging harshly into his palms. He wasn't worried about that though. What he was worried about was his best friend, James Barnes, standing not 10 feet from him, looking exactly as he did during the war.

"Bucky?" his voice came out rough as he spoke.

"Hey, Steve. I'm afraid I'm gonna have to kill ya." Bucky shrugged his jacket off as he spoke, circling his neck and cracking it loudly.

"I'm afraid I can't let ya do that, Buck."

"We'll see."

Bucky ran at him, moving in a way that was vaguely reminiscent of when he faced off to the winter soldier under the over pass. He pulled back his arm and threw a punch as the man got closer, but Bucky had been expecting it. He caught the Captain's fist in his palm, twisting it as he threw one of his own. It connected sharply to the shield and Steve used it to push him back, gaining a little space between them. He wanted to use words, like Rose had, but this wasn't a situation that one talked themselves out of.

Steve lunged a knee at him, hitting him in the solar plexus hard enough that the man buckled. He took that moment to throw an uppercut, his fist connecting and throwing Bucky off balance and onto his back. He threw himself over the man, throwing another punch at his face that missed. Bucky threw his face to the side, dodging the blow as he came back with one of his own.

Steve managed to dodge it, barely, as he rolled sideways off his best friend turned enemy. He launched himself to his feet quickly, trying to keep his eye on Bucky as he did so. He grunted as Bucky's shoulder impacted hard with his midsection, a whoosh of air rushed from his lungs as the man managed to slide him back a foot or so. He took in a breath as he brought his elbow down onto his friends' back harshly, several times.

They went at it for several long moments, before he managed to clock him in the jaw hard enough to knock him out. He shook his hand out, surprised at the force in which he had to exert. His lungs burned and his ribs felt bruised. In fact, he was almost a hundred percent sure that Buck had managed to break at least one of them.

He sat back for a moment, weary of the whole situation. He had to remind himself that this was a simulation and that he hadn't just knocked out his best friend. He continued to breathe for a few more minutes before gathering his senses and continuing the course. He had people watching him, after all.

It didn't take long for Steve to reach the button after that, hitting it before heading out the door. He'd had enough of this room for today.

He thought about what he had learned about Rose all the way back to the control room. She looked so young that it was hard to believe she'd had a husband, let alone one that she had outlived by a little less than a century. He had to hand it to her, she aged well. He supposed he did too, though. He looked good for ninety, if he did say so himself.

Maybe Natasha had been right, maybe it was time.


	3. Doctor

**_I'm so sorry this took so long and that it's relatively short. Anyways, enjoy!_**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel universe or Doctor Who**_

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The team spent the rest of the day in Torchwoods American bunker, each of them biding their time after their respective tests by poking around the many different rooms. Steve was pleased with the fact that they weren't being barred by security clearance and being allowed into whichever room they so pleased. Shields abundance of red tape had bothered him to no end.

Now, however, as he wandered from room to room, speaking with the other Torchwood agents, he was beginning to wonder over his chances with Rose. He seemed to catch the Doctor at every corner he turned. Whether it be a commemorative photo, an award, or even an informative hologram of the man himself. He was standing at one such terminal now, staring at the man and startled by the amount of awareness the program seemed to have.

"Well, hello! My names the Doctor! Do you have any questions or can I direct you anywhere in the facility, perhaps?"

Steve frowned slightly, trying hard not to draw any comparisons, but doing so anyways. The Doctor was definitely shorter than him with dark brown hair and deep brown eyes. They couldn't have been more dissimilar. The Doctor was the brains, where as he was all brawns. He could see how he and Rose fit together, he supposed. His brain conjuring an image of them hand in hand before quickly shaking it away.

"Are you alright?" The Doctor had furrowed his brow, looking up and down the hall as if he was searching for someone, "Do you need me to get you the med bay?'

The Captain raised his brow, "No, sir, all good over here. If it wouldn't be to forward of me though, might I ask some personal questions? I mean, I'm not sure if you're even programmed to do that –"

The Doctor cut him off quickly, "Of course! Depends on what kind of personal question though."

"I'd just like to know a little bit about you, sir. You founded Torchwood alongside Rose Tyler?"

A dreamy looked passed the Doctors face, a bright smile lighting it even as he began to speak, "Yes! Rose Tyler and I came to this universe in 1932 and had founded the Torchwood Institute by late 1933. The American leg of our institute is very new, however. Just a wee five years old."

Steve nodded his head, "If it's not too rude of me to ask, when and how did you pass, sir?"

"Oh, none of that 'sir' nonsense, the Doctor will do. And it's not rude at all, common knowledge I thought. Then again, you must be pretty new, never seen your face before. Anyways! My flesh died in 1970 from Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease."

Steve raised his brow, "Your flesh? What do you mean by that?"

"Transcendence, my boy! My Rose and I found a way for me to leave my mind and memory within the Torchwood systems. Really rather brilliant, if I do say so myself."

He shifted from foot to foot, staring at the ghost of a man in front of him, "So, are you and Rose…?" he dragged the end out, not really wanting to voice the concern he was having as he was afraid he might expose himself.

"Oh, heavens no! Not anymore. We tried, for the first few years, didn't work though. It's amazing how much of a relationship requires human interaction and touch."

Steve felt the relief settle over his body like a blanket, flooding away from him. The awkwardness remained, however, that whatever he may try to start with Rose would be over-shadowed by her AI ex-husband. He was about to continue his questioning and try and get some backstory on Rose when she came down the corridor and interrupted him.

"Hello, Capt., I didn't realize that you were still here." She stopped when she reached his side, settling an even distance between him and the Doctor.

"Just taking a look around the facilities, ma'am."

"Hello, darling! I was just telling-" The Doctor stopped short, directing his gaze at Steve once again, "I don't believe I actually caught your name, I'm sorry. Incredibly rude of me."

"Doctor, this is Steve Rogers. He also goes by Captain America."

"No! The Captain America. Boy, what a day! Anyways, I was just telling him a little bit about myself."

Rose laughed, a tinkling sound that sent shivers down Steve's spine and caused an involuntary smile to spread across his face, "'Course you were, you could tell stories all day. Got a gob on him, he does,"

"Not a problem, ma'am, I did ask a fair amount of questions."

Rose looked at him, a small smile on her face, "Would you like to grab lunch with me? I could murder a basket of chips."

Steve was slightly startled by the sudden change of subject, but nodded his head anyways in assent, "Of course."

She looked at the hologram and nodded her head, "I'll catch up with you later. Hit me on the comm's if there's any trouble. "

He watched as the Doctor smiled before vanishing.

-:-:-:-:-

"So, why didn't you stick around and watch the rest of your team?" She's doused her fries in malt vinegar and salt and he's wondering how she stays so thin if she eats stuff that greasy all the time.

"I already know how everyone works in the field, ma'am. Besides, Mr. Stark had enough of an audience and I believe that his ego is as big as it needs to be."

She nearly chokes as she laughs around the fry in her mouth and he's beginning to get the sense that she doesn't laugh much anymore when she quiets down quickly.

"Do you do this often?"

"'m sorry?"

"Spend time with your team members? I'm used to the big man staying up in his office while the little men do the work."

She chews for a bit, scooting her fries around on the plate, "'m not your run of the mill, head of a company type. The best way to avoid subterfuge is to know your team members individually. We may get a lot done, Mr. Rogers, but we are very few in numbers."

"Steve, ma'am, you can call me Steve."

She's smiling coyly at him over her plate and he feels his heart skip a beat and an ache swell in his chest, he hadn't felt like this in a while, "Well, then you need to drop the ma'am and call me Rose. Never was much of a ma'am, makes me sound old."

He reaches a hand across the table, wetting his lips softly when she fits her soft hand in his own, "You got yourself a deal, Rose."

"The Doctor and I, we never were ones for titles or salutes. 's just so – I don't know, not us. It's definitely not me."

"I think it takes an awful lot to start a company from the ground up, you both deserve the respect."

He's picking at his salad and trying hard not to stare at her too much, "You're skillset, it's pretty amazing."

He can tell she's embarrassed, averting eye contact as well, "It's all very simple. Just destruction of matter by breaking it down."

"Still amazing in my book."

The rest of the dinner is small talk, where she grew up and how she was raised. They talk about him some, too. His past, his view, but they don't go too deep. It's nice, but it's no first date.

When he flags a cab down for her that night, he hesitates before shutting the door, weight shifting between one foot and the next as he tries to decide what to do, "Hey, Rose, I was just wondering. Um- Do you think I could take you out some time?"

Her face is full of surprise when she looks at him from her lap, "What? Like – like a real date?"

"Yes. If that's okay."

"Oh, um, yeah. Sure."

"Great, okay, I'll call you then. We'll make a date." He shuts her door as she rolls down the window, his face a big smile.

"Right." He sees the tiniest of smiles appear on her face as the cab begins to pull away, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."


	4. Togetherness

Steve started his Wednesday morning like he started every Wednesday morning since he had been woken up from the ice. He brewed some coffee that he enjoyed with a bowl of corn flakes, before brushing his teeth and dressing for his morning run. His morning run was followed by a quick shower and a short walk to the church that was around the corner from his new, Torchwood provided apartment that he rarely got the chance to stay in since they had taken over for S.H.I.E.L.D.

He thought about calling Rose for a majority of the sermon, what he would say to her, where he would take her, he figured that made him a marginally bad christian for not paying the preacher much mind, but he also figured that he was owed the distraction after everything he did for everyone else. Being a superhero, though he rarely referred to himself as such, didn't provide for many days off, unless you were Tony Stark, then he supposed you could do whatever you wanted, whenever you wanted.

After church came to a close at roughly eight A.M., he always took a moment to pray. Sometimes it was for Peggy, other times it was for Bucky, but today he prayed for himself. He didn't usually but, while he was excited for whatever his future held with Rose, he couldn't shake off the feeling that they were going to be caught up in something terrible. He just hoped that he had the strength to help with whatever it was when the time came.

He talked briefly with the pastor before leaving the rather small building and heading towards where he knew the Union Square market to be. It was a nice day and he figured that God had given him legs for a reason as he took his time making it to his destination. New York was rather small and living there put just about everything in walking distance. Aside from that, he wasn't above riding the subway.

It took him roughly thirty minutes to get to where he was going, happy as he took in the bustling crowd of the open-air market. He made his way through the throngs of people to where he knew his favorite stand would be waiting, small and inconspicuous amongst the brighter colors of its neighbors.

"Hey there, Gwenyth. How are you doing today?"

The small, older woman let out a laugh, smiling broadly and causing her eyes to crinkle further in the corners, "It's so good to see you, Steven! It's been awhile, I was afraid you weren't coming back."

"Just Steve, ma'am. Only my mother called me Steven."

He reached across the booth as she struggled with a box of plums, helping her set them on the table. She patted his hand gently, her small fingers barely shadowing his as she did so, "Such a good boy."

He smiled softly at her, his now free hand covering hers for a moment before he pulled away to pick up an apple, "What do you have for me today, Gwen?"

"Well, I see you've found the apples but, I've also got some wonderful greens from a farm up north, they'd work beautifully in a salad."

"I'll take a half a pound of spinach and kale then. Also, some of these apples, two cups of those lovely cranberries, and a container of strawberries."

"Good decision."

He helped her package them all up, talking with her about how her grandchildren were and when they were coming to visit next, "You should come by and visit them, dear, they'd absolutely love it."

"Anything for you, Gwen." He grabbed a pen and paper from beside her register and wrote down his number quickly, "Just call me if you ever need me and I'll be there."

He handed her more money than the produce was worth before walking away with a smile and a wave. If he didn't leave quickly she would try and argue with him about the overpayment and he was in too good of a mood to fight with anyone today about anything.

As he made the short walk home, he played with his cell phone, his finger hovering over Roses' name on the screen. He hadn't intended to call her yet, but his lack of attention towards his surroundings had caused him to stumble over a crooked piece of sidewalk, his finger jabbing her name on the screen. He momentarily panicked before resigning himself and lifting the handheld to his face, cradling it between his cheek and shoulder as he rebalanced his groceries.

"Tyler."

"Oh! Hi - uh, I mean, hey." he cleared his throat, trying to sound manlier than he felt at that particular moment, "It's Steve, Steve Rogers."

Her laugh is full of mirth, as if she had already known it was him before she had picked up the phone, but of course she had, she knew everything, "I know, how are you?"

"Great! I, uh, I'm just getting back from the market. You know, making lunch." His hands are fumbling with his keys, trying to get his door open while keeping hold of the groceries and the phone.

"So, t' what do I owe the pleasure?" He can hear her tongue-in-teeth smile without even seeing her face and he felt himself smiling to match.

"I was wondering if you would want to come over tonight for dinner? I'm not the best chef in the world, haven't really had the time to learn, but I'm sure I could figure something out."

"When you put it like that, how can a lady say no?"

He nearly jumped for joy, instead he pumps the fist that is not full of groceries in the air, an apple still managing to tumble out of the bag. He feels embarrassment creeping on him before he remembers that she can't see him. He settles his bag on the counter before reaching down for the apple, tossing it in the air jovially with his free hand, "So, maybe six tonight, does that work?"

"Make it six thirty and you've got yourself a deal."

"Deal."

"Do you know how to get here?"

She chuckles softly before answering him, "'course. Later."

His smile gets broader as he hangs up his phone, setting it on the counter as he takes a large bite out of his apple.

He spent a majority of the day tidying up his apartment for Rose's arrival, making sure that the living areas and bathroom were up to his tastes for company before heading out to do extra shopping for dinner. He was going to make chicken, pretty confident that it wouldn't be that difficult of an entree for him to accomplish with his low level of skill in cooking.

He went to one of the organic markets not far from his place to pick up the ingredients he was missing at home, his cabinets frightfully sparse due to his bachelor lifestyle and his busy job. He tried not to pay much mind to the girl that flirted with him from behind the checkout counter, remaining as pleasant as possible with how forward she was being.

"Looks like you'll be making something pretty good for dinner tonight. I imagine it takes a pretty healthy diet to keep those muscles as brilliant as they are. How much do you work out?"

Steve cleared his throat quietly, his eyes trained on her face even as she leaned forward to show off her cleavage while she lazily scanned his groceries, "I have a rather demanding job that keeps me active."

"So, manual labor then." Her eyes are hooded as she lightly laughs, "You should take me out sometime."

It wasn't a question, more of a demand. He was slightly taken aback by her forwardness and quickly responded with the first panicked thought that came to his mind, "I'm seeing someone. That's actually why I'm buying all this food. Dinner for two, you know?"

It was an honest answer, though he didn't think that lunch and a date that hadn't happened yet counted as "seeing someone".

He watched her as she continued to smile, scanning the last of his items and waiting for him to pass the money for the transaction. She let her fingers graze his hand as he dropped the money into her waiting palm, "She wouldn't have to know."

He waited until she handed the money back to respond, his one bag in hand as he went to move out of her line, "I'm sorry ma'am, but that's just not how I work. There isn't a dishonest bone in my body. Even if she never found out, I would know and God would know and that's just not okay by me."

She sneered as he left her line, "Ugh, you're one of _those _guys."

He wasn't sure quite what she meant by that statement, but he smiled nonetheless, "Have a good day, ma'am"

He made it home rather quickly, throwing the pre-seasoned chicken in a pan and starting to pre-heat the oven. He was going to make a salad as well since he had bought the ingredients for lunch and had been pent up with too much energy to actually eat it. He worked quickly, cutting the fruit into small pieces and throwing it in with a bowl full of spinach and kale.

As soon as the oven was finished, he tossed the chicken in and quickly changed into a nice pair of jeans and a dark blue flannel that he hadn't had the chance to wear yet. He was just finished buttoning the last button when the doorbell rang.

He moved swiftly to the door but hesitated when he was in front of it to try his damndest to compose himself. He'd never been on a real date before, not one that wasn't with a girl who was there as part of a double-date that Bucky had scored. He wiped his palms on his jeans, making sure they weren't sweaty as he unlocked the deadbolt and opened the door.

"Hey."

She was breathtaking in a pair of tight-fitting jeans and a spaghetti strap shirt that was covered by a light sweater. He'd never seen her in civvies before and boy had he wished he had seen her sooner.

"What's cookin' good lookin'?" Her tongue was caught in her teeth again as she pulled that smile that he loved.

"Hopefully something good. Would you like to come in?" He stepped aside, holding the door for her.

"'Course." she looked around as she moved into the apartment, setting her purse by the front door absently, "This is the cleanest bachelor pad've ever seen."

"You must be visiting the wrong sort of people." he replied as he shut the door, a smile still on his face.

"Don't let Clint hear you say that."

He laughed lightly, leading her over to his couch and presenting her with a bottle of wine he'd bought, "Glass of Cabernet?"

"That would be lovely." She glanced around his apartment as he walked away from her, taking in the large window that looked out into the city and the dark hallway that surely lead to the bedrooms and bathrooms, "So, these are the new digs? I heard your last one got pretty roughed up in an altercation of some sort."

He shrugged as he poured her a glass of wine in the connected kitchen, "I think that all of us have lost at least one home to some sort of 'altercation'."

She laughed as he passed her the glass, but there wasn't much humor in it. She waited until her lips were at the rim to respond, her eyes locked onto his from where she was leaned against the back of his L-shaped couch, "I suppose that's true."

He guided her to sit down with him, his free hand on her back while the other clutched loosely at the neck of a beer, "So, while we wait on dinner, tell me a little bit about yourself."

"Yes, I suppose that my life isn't really public record. What do you want to know?"

"What was your life like before you lived in this world?"

They were turned sideways towards each other, one of his arms running along the back of the couch. They each had a leg pulled up, making themselves comfortable as they settled in to get to know one another.

"The dimension I grew up in wasn't like this dimension. We had aliens, but the only person that could defend us was the Doctor and ourselves. We didn't have superheroes, we just had regular citizens trying to do good while inevitably doing something bad."

"Who were you before the Doctor?" He kept his eyes locked on hers, his hand tight around his bottle as he took a drink.

"I was nobody. Just some 19-year-old girl who worked in a shop and shared a small apartment with her mum." she shrugged, running her finger along the edge of her glass, "I met the Doctor when he blew up my job. He took my hand, told me to run, and that was it, I never looked back. Once you see the stars, it's hard to go back to living a normal life."

"I've never seen the stars up close. So, I'll just have to take your word for it."

She winked at him, a broad smile on her face, "I'll have to take you some time."

He set down his beer, everything about his demeanor screaming that he was shocked, "You can still go out there?"

"'Course I can and I do so frequently. My machine can travel through space and time. I could be gone for a week and you would never even know it."

He ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head in disbelief, "I can't even imagine."

It was silent for a few minutes as he tried to grasp the concept. He gave up after a few short moments, deciding that he would have to see it to believe it, "So, what about your powers? Everyone seems to think that you're some sort of all-powerful being."

"Not anymore. I used to be able to bring people back to life, back when I first got my powers. Now I can heal people and travel, but I can't travel far. Like, if I wanted to I could go from here to home, but any further would be a stretch. 've got about a 20-mile radius before I'm absolutely knackered. Plus, like I showed you on the first day, I can deconstruct things and put them back together. I could probably get rid of a small building, but living things and stuff larger than that takes a lot of work. Probably kill me, to be honest. Aside from that, I just know stuff about people. I can see their timeline, but I try not to look, it feels personal."

He was dismayed, staring at her as he tried to form words, "You can see my future?"

She shrugged, "Yeah, but I try not to look. Especially since, y'know, I wanted to spend more time with you and it's sort of bad luck to look at your own future. Not that I think I'll be, y'know, a big part of your future or anything! Just, I mean, we know each other and what not." She sipped anxiously at her wine, brushing her hair behind her ear with her free hand as she looked at everything except him.

"I'd like you to be a part of my future. I mean, not like that, if you don't want to. It's really your choice." He moved his hand, brushing a strand of hair back that had fallen from behind her ear. And For a moment, a brief window of time, he thought that they were going to kiss. As he moved in, his eyes flicking from her lips to her eyes, he hesitated when his mouth was almost on hers. It was with a light brush of her lips against his as she spoke that had him pulling back, "Do you smell something burning?"

He reeled back, his eyes darting to the kitchen where he caught smoke drifting from his stove. He moved, jumping over the couch quickly and taking the few strides to the oven as fast as he could.

He grabbed the pot holders that were hanging next to the stove with one hand and turned the oven off with the other coughing as he ripped the door open and waving his free hand in his face as he leaned down to grab the tray, tossing it in the sink.

Rose had crept up on him and was standing at his shoulder staring down at the mess in the basin, "So, what was that supposed to be?"

He sighed dejectedly, putting a hand across his face as he spoke, "Chicken."

She let out a long whistle as she walked away, "Well, I hate to break it to you, but that bird is toast."

He rolled his eyes but caught himself laughing anyways. His laughter grew louder and continued as she joined in from her place against the island, her hand grabbing at her midsection.

When they finally managed to calm down and gather enough air to speak, Steve spoke first, "I'm really sorry about that."

She waved a hand, brushing off his error like it was nothing, "It's fine, my husband used to blow stuff up as a hobby. We'll just remember this and I'll cook for you next time."

His eyes flicked to hers, "So, there'll be a next time then?"

Her face was a soft pink as she responded and he was proud that he had managed to make the almighty Bad Wolf blush, "'Course."

He nodded his head, turning his face away to hide his own blush, "How do you feel about pizza?"

She was laughing again and he watched as the mess in the sink fell to gold dust, "It could do."

He turned to smile at her, moving towards her and grabbing the phone that rested on the counter behind her. He stayed close when her face grew redder at his proximity, ordering the pizza in the small space that they occupied then returning the phone to its original resting place, "So, what now?"

"'M up for whatever."

He knew she hadn't meant it that way, but he blushed anyways before moving away and back towards the living room, "How about a movie? I know that _Kingsman _is on demand right now."

"That sounds great. 'M just gonna bring this whole bottle with me, if that's okay."

"Of course, I got it for you"

He tries to will away his red face when she joins him on the couch, his hands fumbling awkwardly with the remote as he tries to remember what Sam Wilson had told him about how this whole cable setup worked.

Steve was relieved when Rose finally just leaned over and took the remote from him, laughing as she pulled up the on-demand function and selected their movie, "I always forget that you're not from this century."

He laughed, scratching the back of his head as he reached for his quickly warming beer, "I never forget, everything is so different."

"I know what you mean, I lived through that time."

"Oh! I'd forgotten about that. What did you do during the war?"

Rose fidgeted a bit, her eyes on the television as the opening sequence rolled, "We stayed out of it, mostly. The war in this dimension was much the same as the war in mine. So, we knew where to avoid and where was safe. We helped in places that weren't a fixed point though, saved some of the lives that didn't have to be lost."

He was a little confused as he tried to piece things together, his eyes never straying from the profile of her face, "Are you saying that you could have st-"

She cut him off with a sharp glance, not liking where she knew he was going with this, "No. There are certain events in time that have to happen. World War 1, World War 2, 9/11, none of that could be changed, they were fixed points in time."

He looked away from her, taken aback by the severity in her voice, "I see. It must be awful to know what is going to happen and not be able to do anything about it."

"World War 2 was the worst event that I had ever had the misfortune to experience. The only thing that made it better was knowing that this dimension had you to help and that we were able to save the lives that we could." Her gentle reply had him looking back, his hand moving slowly to cradle hers.

He was going to say something but was interrupted by a loud knocking. He frowned at her sadly before getting up and moving towards the door. He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket as he wrenched it open, a false smile plastered on his face as he conversed with the enthusiastic pizza boy. Yes, he was Captain America; Sure, he would take a picture; No, he couldn't come in and look around.

When he finally managed to shut the door, he quickly grabbed some paper plates from the kitchen and returned to the living room where a smiling Rose was waiting with a raised eyebrow, "Fanboy?"

"I prefer to call them enthusiastic admirers."

She looked very serious as she took the plates he was offering, "Of course."

He laughed as he sat down and they settled into their movie and dinner. They didn't do much talking after that except when they were pointing out errors dealing with guns or planes. They would laugh at the funny parts and he even caught Rose crying when Harry Hart died. He took that moment to wrap an arm around her shoulder, his eyes facing the movie so that he wouldn't have to see the look on her face. Not that he had much to worry about as she snuggled into his side to finish the rest of the film.

When it was finally over and the credits rolled, she stretched, his arm falling away from her shoulders as she got up and arched her back, her arms above her head. He heard a subtle pop and smiled at her, "Uncomfortable?"

"Exactly the opposite." She turned to look at him, a gleam in her eyes, "I could have stayed there all night."

He blushed furiously, standing up and stretching as well.

"However, we have training tomorrow and I should probably be getting home."

His eyes were sad, his hand reaching out so that he could wind his fingers with hers, "Let me walk you."

"I'd like that."

He felt loss as she let go of his hand to gather her stuff, but she had taken her shoes off at some point during the movie and she had to grab her purse from beside the door. When she was ready he followed her out the front and did up the lock. As he spun around, he was pleasantly surprised by her outstretched hand. He let her fingers wind through his, a content hum leaving his throat, "It's been awhile since I've held a hand and I _wasn't_ running from imminent danger."

"Same here."

The wind was brisk as they walked outside and he moved her closer to his side, tucking her under his arm with a smile, "Why's that?"

"Well, when you hold the same person's hand for as long as I did, it's hard t' imagine holding anyone else's."

He nodded his head, rubbing his hand up and down her arm, "Understandable."

"What about you?"

"Well, I wasn't very popular before I became Captain America. So, I didn't hold a lot of hands to begin with and when I was finally able to meet a girl who liked me for me, I plummeted my plane into the water before I ever got to take her on the first date."

He could feel her nod sympathetically at his side, "Missed opportunities are always the worst. All you can think about is how you should've said something sooner, shouldn't've left the words unsaid."

"You sound like you have some experience there."

"Yes, I think everyone experiences those kinds of moments eventually."

He nodded his head in agreement before turning his head towards the sky and taking in what few stars he could see through the light pollution, "The thing I miss the most about the '40's is the stars. You can't see them as well anymore. I feel like that's another one of those missed opportunities."

They were silent for the last stretch of the walk and he was wondering if he had said something wrong until she pulled him to a stop in front of what he assumed was her apartment, "How about this, next date I'll take you to see the stars."

He smiled down at her, wrapping her in his arms to keep her warm, "That already sounds better than the horrible job that I've done tonight."

She chuckled, pulling her arms from where they were trapped against his chest to wind them around his waist, "I had a pretty good time, ta."

"You can be honest, I'm pretty tough."

She moved one of her arms, her hand running through his hair to the back of his head so that she can pull him down to meet her eyes, "I am being honest."

He closes his eyes and pushes forward, his lips finding hers in a kiss that he had been holding back since before they had dinner. She smells like cherries and leather, which he knows is from the standard issue jumpsuit that she wears. Her mouth is soft and pliant against his and he has to stop himself from delving his tongue between her lips for a proper makeout session. Though, his morals don't hold her back from running her warm tongue along his bottom lip and sucking it into her mouth.

He gasps and she uses that as her chance to brush her tongue against his own. Both of her hands are in his hair now, tugging and pulling him closer to her than he had been to another human being in a long time. He pulls her tight against his body, his mouth capturing the moan that escapes her lips when her chest brushes his.

He's about to move his hand under the hem of her shirt when one of their phones rings and then the other. She unwinds herself from him breathlessly, her hand delving into her purse and finding her phone.

"Tyler." her tone is aggressive, but lacked some of the authority she normally carried when she was able to catch her breath.

He's about to answer his phone as well, but she stops him with a hand on his arm, "Say that again."

She doesn't give the person more than a few seconds to respond before she's responding in a rushed voice, "Gather the team."

She hangs up quickly, gripping his arm tightly in her hand and taking a deep breath, "You're gonna want to breathe."

Before he even has a chance to ask, they're falling to gold dust in the middle of an empty street.


End file.
